Zoosyst. Evol. 98 (1) 2022, 55-63 | DOI! 10.3897/zse.98.78202

yee
BERLIN

New records and a new cave-dwelling species of Agoristenidae
(Arachnida, Opiliones) from Colombia

Andrés F. Garcia!, Alex Gonzalez Vargas*, Miguel Gutiérrez Estrada?

1 Departamento de Invertebrados, Museu Nacional/Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ), Quinta da Boa Vista, Sdo Cristovdao,
20.940—040, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil
2 Grupo de Investigacion Ecologia y Biodiversidad en Ecosistemas Tropicales (EBET), Semillero de Investigacion Bioespeleologia Neotropical,

Facultad de Ciencias Basicas, Universidad de La Guajira, Riohacha, Colombia
http://zoobank.org/F6DAS8918-82B8-49C5-BD64-FE152C5D71BE

Corresponding author: Andrés F. Garcia (agarciarinc@gmail.com)

Academic editor: Danilo Harms # Received 19 November 2021 # Accepted 9 February 2022 Published 16 February 2022

Abstract

Three species of Avima are recorded for the first time from Colombia (La Guajira department): A. venezuelica Soares & Avram, 1981,
A. troglobia (Pinto-da-Rocha, 1996), and 4. wayuunaiki sp. nov. Complementary and new descriptions of the species are offered and

scanning electron microscopy photographs of the male genitalia of A. troglobia are given.

Key Words

Avima, Caribbean, La Guajira, Laniatores, Leiosteninae

Introduction

The family Agoristenidae is a small and unusual group
of Neotropical harvestmen (27 genera and 78 described
species), found mainly in leaf litter, under rotten logs and
rocks, and over rocky walls (Ahumada-C. et al. 2020;
Garcia and Kury 2020). It is currently divided into three
subfamilies: Agoristeninae Silhavy, 1973, Leiosteninae
Silhavy, 1973 and Globibuninae Kury, 2012. Leiosteninae
contains 13 genera and 60 species, distributed mainly
in northern South America. In Colombia, the subfamily
is represented by seven genera and nine species (Garcia
and Pastrana 2021, Kury et al. 2021, Villarreal and Garcia
2021), two of them being members of Avima Roewer,
1949: Avima scabra (Roewer, 1963) and Avima tuttifrutti
Garcia & Pastrana, 2021, from Cundinamarca and Cordoba
departments, respectively (Garcia and Pastrana 2021).

In recent field trips to the Colombian Caribbean,
three species of Avima were recognized, one new and
two of them known previously from Venezuela (Avima
venezuelica Soares & Avram, 1981 and Avima troglobia
(Pinto-da-Rocha, 1996)). So, in the present work, we

discuss some aspects of the harvestmen biodiversity of La
Guajira and offer complementary and new descriptions,
photographs of the general habitus, and SEM images of
some of the male genitalia, together with a distributional
map of the three species in Northern South America.

Methods

The species were photographed using a Leica M20S5C ste-
reoscope attached to a Leica DFC450 digital camera and
were posteriorly edited in Photoshop CC 2014 software.
Color descriptions use the standard names of the 267 Color
Centroids of the NBS/IBCC Color System (Jaffer, 2001) as
explained tn Kury and Orrico (2006). Scanning Electron Mi-
croscopy (SEM) was carried out with a JEOL JSM-6390LV
belonging to Rudolf Barth Electron Microscopy Platform of
the Oswaldo Cruz Institute / Fiocruz (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil).

Geographic coordinates have been __ transcribed
verbatim from the labels and may be in different formats;
when there was no indication of coordinates, they were
written between square brackets in decimal degrees,

Copyright Garcia AF et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY 4.0), which permits unrestricted use,
distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.

56

based on Rodriguez and Galan (2008). The distribution
map was made with QGIS 3.18 Zurich software (QGIS
Development Team 2021). Colored shapes refer to WWE
Terrestrial Ecoregions of the World (Olson et al. 2001).
Patterns of description follow Garcia and Villarreal
(2020) with modifications. The terminology for dorsal
scutum outline types follows Kury and Medrano (2016),
with the modifications explained in Villarreal and Garcia
(2021), and for chaetotaxy of penis lamina parva and trun-
cus follows Kury and Villarreal (2015). Morphometric ab-
breviations are: AL (maximum abdominal scutum length),
AW (maximum dorsal scutum width), BaCh (basichelicer-
itae length), ChL (chelicera length), CL (carapace length),
CW (maximum carapace width), DS (dorsal scutum), DSL
(dorsal scutum length), Fe (femur), LP (lamina parva), MS
(macrosetae of penis), Mt (metatarsus), Pa (patella), Ta
(tarsus), Ti (tibia), TL (total length), Tr (trochanter). All
measurements are in mm unless otherwise noted.
Abbreviations of the cited repositories are: CBUDC
(Coleccion de Ejemplares Bioldgicos de la Universidad de
Cartagena. Cartagena de Indias, Colombia); ICN (Instituto
de Ciencias Naturales, Universidad Nacional de Colombia.
Bogota, Colombia); MBUZ (Museo de Biologia de La Uni-
versidad del Zulia. Maracaibo, Venezuela); MNRJ (Museu
Nacional, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro. Rio de
Janeiro, Brazil); MUSENUV (Museo de Entomologia de
la Universidad del Valle. Cali, Colombia); MZUSP (Mu-
seu de Zoologia da Universidade de Sao Paulo. Sao Paulo,
Brazil). The MNRJ material destroyed by the fire in Sep-
tember 2018 is marked with an exclamation mark (!).

Results

Systematics

Order Opiliones Sundevall, 1833

Suborder Laniatores Thorell, 1876
Superfamily Gonyleptoidea Sundevall, 1833
Family Agoristenidae Silhavy, 1973
Subfamily Leiosteninae Silhavy, 1973

Genus Avima Roewer, 1949

Avima Roewer, 1949: 58, fig. 112; Soares & Avram, 1982: 26 (type SMF
1533/8, male holotype). A complete synonymic list may be found in
Villarreal and Kury (2009).

Type species. Avima leucobunus Roewer, 1949.

Avima wayuunaiki sp. nov.
http://zoobank.org/42360820-446E-4054-BODB-CF52D6DE4317
Figs 1-3, 6A, C

Type data. COLOMBIA: < holotype: La Guajira,
Hatonuevo, Cerro Bafiaderos, cueva [Luis Pablo Ojeda];
11°7'51.5"N, 72°47'23.9"W [11.130972°, -72.789972°];

zse.pensoft.net

Garcia, A.F. et al.: New records of Agoristenidae from Colombia

978 m a.s.l.; 14 July 2015; CarBio Team 17 leg.; ICN-
Ao-1976°7 4 10 9: same data as holotype; ICN-Ao-1718
° 1 1 Q: same data as holotype; MUSENUV-Ar 2102
°4 492 9: same locality as holotype, vereda Bafiaderos:
cueva [Luis Pablo Ojeda]; 11°7'33.3"N, 72°47'06.9"W
[11.125899°, -72.785241°]; 785 m a.s.l.; 19 May 2018;
Miguel Gutiérrez leg.; MNRJ 283 * 2 2: same locality as
previous; CBUDC-ARA 335.

Description. Male dHolotype (ICN-Ao-1976).
Measurements. TL (ChL+DSL): 4.45, DSL: 2.66,
ChinL07, CW: 4.79; AL 1.59, AW* 2:21,-BaCh: 0:55:
Pedipalp: Tr: 0.60, Fe: 1.23, Pa: 0.72, Ti: 0.88, Ta: 0.70,
Claw: 0.79. Leg I: Tr: 0.42, Fe: 4.10, Pa: 0.73, Ti: 3.19,
Mt 3 869Tae 1312 To 1S:6lhee Th Tre0:37,-Fero 2.
Pa: 0.98, Ti: 7.67, Mt: 12.40, Ta: 5.14, TL: 35.97. Leg
II: Tr 0:62, Fe? 3:92,. Pa: 20:97, Ti773..65, Mt; 752, Ta:
1.58, TL: 20.26. Leg IV: Tr: 0.70, Fe: 8.65, Pa: 1.00, Ti:
4.85, Mt: 11.14, Ta: 1.82, TL: 28.16.

Dorsum. DS Epsilon type 2. Anterior and lateral
margins of DS smooth. Ocularium low, smooth, and
without median concavity (Fig. 1A, B, E). Mesotergum
slightly delimited, divided into four smooth areas: area
I divided into two halves; areas II-IV undivided (Fig.
2A). Posterior margin of scutum substraight and with
few granules (Figs 1D, 2B). Free tergites I-III with some
granules (Fig. 1B, D, E).

Venter. Coxa I with a longitudinal row of tubercles
and one large bicapitate tubercle on the anteroproximal
margin (Fig. 2C); coxae H-IV with some granules; coxa
II longer than coxa I; coxa III longer than coxae I and
II; coxa IV backward projected. Stigmata oval, small and
transverse (Fig. 1C).

Chelicera. Chelicera swollen. BaCh quadrate in
dorsal view, with well-marked bulla, three mesal, five
anterior, and three ectal tubercles. Hand with setiferous
tubercles of different sizes reaching the medial and
posterior region. Fixed finger with the inner surface
finely grooved. Movable finger with one trapezoid,
small, sub-basal tooth, and with a dentate distal inner
surface (Fig. 2D).

Pedipalps. A\l segments more slender than usual
(Fig. 1B). Trochanter with one subapical tubercle on the
ventral face. Femur with a ventroectal row of four setif-
erous tubercles (the two basalmost largest and the two
distalmost medium-sized), and one large ventromesal se-
tiferous tubercle in the apical portion (Fig. 2E). Patella
with one large mesal setiferous tubercle. Tibia ectal III,
mesal Ili. Tarsus ectal Ili, mesal Il.

Legs. Increasing in thickness from leg I to leg IV, all
smooth (Fig. 1A). Leg I filiform; coxae I-III with one dor-
soanterior and one dorso-posterior tubercle; Coxa IV with
some prolaterodistal tubercles; Fe I-IV darker than I-II.
Fe IV length three and a half times DS length (Fig. 1A);
Ta I-II each with one smooth claw; Ta III-[V with two
subparallel smooth claws and without tarsal process. Tar-
sal counts: 9(3)-9(3)/19(3)-18(3)/7-6/7-7.

Penis. LP small (width twice the height) and apically
depressed, with anterolateral acute corners (crescent-
shaped) apically pointed (Fig. 3A—E). Malleus with two

Zoosyst. Evol. 98 (1) 2022, 55-63 57

f . : - - .
, = a i 2)... 2 * ae
Figure 1. Avima wayuunaiki sp. nov. ICN-Ao-1976), male holotype. Habitus in panoramic (A), dorsal (B), ventral (C), lateral (D),
and frontal (E) views. Scale bars: 2 mm (A); 1 mm (B-E).

Figure 2. Drawings of Avima wayuunaiki sp. nov. (ICN-Ao-1976), male holotype. Habitus in dorsal (A) and lateral (B) views. Left coxa
I in ventral view (C). Right chelicera in frontal view (D). Left pedipalp in ventral view (E). Scale bars: 1 mm (A, B, D, E); 0.5 mm (C).

zse.pensoft.net

58

|

Garcia, A.F. et al.: New records of Agoristenidae from Colombia

Figure 3. SEM of the male genitalia of Avima wayuunaiki sp. nov. (ICN-Ao-1718), paratype. Distal portion of the penis in lat-
eroapical (A), dorsoapical (B), lateral (C), ventral (D), and oblique (E) views; detail of stylus in lateral view (F). Abbreviations:

MS = Macrosetae. Scale bars: 50 um (A-E); 10 um (F).

pairs of branched MS-A, being MS-A2 far from the base
of the stylus; one pair of branched MS-B; MS-C absent;
two pairs of medium-sized MS-D located in a keel
between the dorsal region of the LP and the base of the
stylus (Fig. 3A—C, E); MS-E2 large and branched, MS-
E]1 short and conical, located slightly distal to MS-E2 on
the ventral side of the LP (Fig. 3C, D). Stylus elongated,
mostly straight (concave at the apex), and surpassing the
LP; dorsal keel present, smooth, elevated at the medial
region, with a dorsoapical sharp projection; tip dorsally
projected (Fig. 3E, F).

Color (in alcohol). DS and chelicerae Light Yellow
(86). Pedipalps, coxae, and trochanters I-IV Pale Yellow
(89). Femora to tarsi I-IV Dark Yellowish Brown
(78) (Fig. 1).

Female. Paratype (ICN-Ao-1718). Similar to male,
except for abdomen wider at areas H-III, chelicerae
not swollen, and leg IV slender. Measurements: TL
(Ch+DSL): 3.50, DSL: 2.35, CL: 0.96, CW: 1.61, AL:

zse.pensoft.net

1.39, AW: 1.96, BaCh: 0.42. Pedipalp: Tr: 0.41, Fe: 1.12,
Pa: 0.65, Ti: 0.84, Ta: 0.79, Claw: 0.78. Leg I: Tr: 0.32,
Fe: 4.27, Pa: 0.69, Ti: 3.19, Mt: 6.04, Ta: 1.29, TL: 15.8;
Leg II: Tr: 0.39, Fe: 9.53, Pa: 0.98, Ti: 8.70, Mt: 12.14,
Ta:.534, TL: 37.08) Lég TIE Tr: 0.39; Fe:.9:36,'Pa: 1.04,
TiS oMiel S25) Tae Sle eS 132 dea: Veal 0768:
Fe: 8.70, Pa: 0.94, Ti: 4.83, Mt: 11.08, Ta: 1.80, TL:
28.03. Tarsal counts: ?-6(3)/? -18(3)/6-6/7-6.

Etymology. Wayuunaiki is the language spoken by the
indigenous Wayuu people in northwestern Venezuela and
northeastern Colombia on the Guajira Peninsula, where
the species was collected. Noun tn apposition.

Natural history. Specimens of A. wayuunaiki sp. nov.
were found inside a cave (Fig. 6B, C) in the northeastern
slopes of Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta. This species
lives sympatrically with Loxosceles guajira Cala-
Riquelme, Gutiérrez-Estrada & Florez, 2015 (Sicariidae)
and Trichomycterus spectrum DoNascimiento & Prada-
Pedreros, 2020 (Trichomycteridae).

Zoosyst. Evol. 98 (1) 2022, 55-63

Avima troglobia (Pinto-da-Rocha, 1996)
Figs 4, 6A

Trinella troglobia Pinto-da-Rocha, 1996: 321, figs 4, 8, 15-16; Kury,
2003: 34.
Avima troglobia (Pinto-da-Rocha, 1996): Villarreal & Kury, 2009: 67.

Type material. VENEZUELA:* 1 <3 holotype and 3 2
paratypes: Zulia, rio Socuy, cueva de Los Laureles;
[10.751 -72.462]; 750 maz.s.1.; 20 Dec. 1990; J. Camacho
and A. Viloria leg; MBUZ* 2 @ paratypes; same
data as previous [in the original label says Sierra de
Perija]; MZSP-1457 * paratype; same data as previous;
16 Dec.1992; P. Gnaspini and E. Trajano leg.; MZSP-
14578* 2 © paratypes; same data as previous, Cueva
La Carlotica; 760 m a.s.l., 21 Dec.1990; J. Camacho, A.
Viloria and T. Barros leg.; MBUZ»* 1 9 paratype; same
data as previous; MNRJ 5472’.

59

New records. COLOMBIA* 3 @: La Guajira,
Barrancas, corregimiento San Pedro, Las_ Pavas;
Cueva, finca La Fortuna; 10°50'04.8"N, 72°40'34.4” |W
[10.834667 -72.676222]; 1731 m as.l.; 8 May 2018;
Miguel Gutiérrez leg.; ICN-Ao-1978¢ 1 ¢ 1 2: same data
as previous; MNRJ 59052. First records for the country.

Complementary description. Body. DS Epsilon
type 1. Ocularium low, domed, smooth, and without eyes
(Fig. 4D, F) Mesotergum divided into four ill-defined areas,
smooth; (Fig. 4A—C). Areas I-IV with a pair of minute
paramedian granules; area I divided into two halves; area
II-IV undivided (Fig. 4A, D). Posterior border of scutum
substraight. Free tergites I-III with some tubercles. Venter.
Stigmatic area with a few granules. Stigmata large, oval
and oblique (Fig. 4E). Legs. Increasing in thickness from
leg I to leg IV, but legs III and IV at least twice as thick as
legs I and H, unarmed. Leg I filiform. Leg IV with darker
coloration than the others. Fe IV length four times DS

Figure 4. Avima troglobia (Pinto-da-Rocha, 1996) (MNRJ 59052), male. Habitus in dorsal (A), frontal (B), lateral (C), panoramic (D), and
ventral (E) views; detail of oculartum showing the eye absence (F). SEM of the penis in lateral (G) and ventral (I) views; detail of the tip
of the stylus (H). Scale bars: 2 mm (A-F); 50 um (G, I), 2 um (H). Macrosetae colors: A. = green, B. = blue, D. = orange, E. = magenta.

zse.pensoft.net

60

length (Fig. 4D). Penis. LP small and depressed, crescent-
shaped, with anterolateral rounded corners apically pointed
(Fig. 4G, I). Hammer (malleus) cylindrical, carrying
MS-A-B (two pairs of MS-A and one pair of MS-B, all
branched) (Fig. 4G, I); MS-C absent; two pairs of short
MS-D located in a keel between the LP and the base of the
stylus (Fig. 4G). MS-E]1 large and triffid, MS-E2 short and
conical, located slightly distal to MS-E1 on the ventral side
of the LP (Fig. 4G, I). Stylus straight, elongated, surpassing
the LP (Fig. 4G, I), with the tip ventrally curved (Fig. 4H)
and a rectangular dorsal keel (Fig. 4G). Coloration (in
alcohol). Carapace Brilliant Yellow (83) (anterior border)
and Brilliant Orange Yellow (67) (posterior border and
laterals). Free tergites and chelicerae Brilliant Orange
Yellow (67). Pedipalps and legs I-III Brilliant Yellow (83).
Leg IV Deep Orange Yellow (69). Sexual dimorphism.
Chelicerae hypertelic in males.

Natural history. A. troglobia was collected exclusively
in acave and shows troglomorphisms (e.g., depigmentation,
lack of eyes (Fig. 4F)), in the same way as the individuals
from the Venezuelan caves, corroborating the idea that it is an
obligatory cave-dwelling species (Pinto-da-Rocha, 1996).

Garcia, A.F. et al.: New records of Agoristenidae from Colombia

Avima venezuelica Soares & Avram, 1981
Figs 5, 6A

Avima venezuelica Soares & Avram, 1981: 95; Villarreal & Kury, 2009: 67
Vima venezuelica. Gonzalez-Sponga, 1987: 543, fig. 708-713.
Trinella venezuelica: Pinto-da-Rocha, 1996: 323; Kury, 2003: 34.

Type Locality. VENEZUELA¢* Zulia, rio Guasare, cueva
de Cerro Verde; [10.725000 -72.620000]. Remark. It is in
Zulia, not Falcon, as in the original description

Records. VENEZUELA® Zulia, Mara, cueva de los
Gavilanes [or Mara]; [11.017000 -72.425000]; 200 m
a.s.l. « Maracaibo, cueva Francisco Zea; [10.758000,
-72.609000]; 360 m a.s.l.

New records. COLOMBIA* 2 @: La Guajira,
Barrancas, corregimiento San Pedro, Las Pavas, camino a
la cueva, finca La Fortuna; 10°50'27.9” .N 72°40'23.9” |W
[10.841083 -72.673306]; 1529 m as.l., 4 July 2016;
Miguel Gutiérrez leg.; ICN-Ao-1979; 1 2: same data as
previous, MNRJ 59053. First records for the country.

Complementary description. DS Epsilon type 2.
Ocularium low, smooth, and with median concavity

lateral (D), and frontal (E) views. Scale bars: 2 mm.

zse.pensoft.net

Zoosyst. Evol. 98 (1) 2022, 55-63

A

61

COLOMBIA

$l Avima wayuunaiki sp. nov.
3 Avima troglobia

@ Avima venezuelica

WWF ecoregions

MS Cordillera Oriental montane forests
(_) Guajira- Barranquilla xeric scrub
Maracaibo dry forests

Figure 6. Geographic distribution of Avima venezuelica, Avima troglobia and Avima wayuunaiki sp. nov. in Northern South Ameri-
ca. A. Map with previous and new records of the species in Colombia and Venezuela (colored areas represent the WWF ecoregions
(Olson et al. 2001)); B. Bafiaderos cave in La Guajira (Colombia), habitat of A. wayuunaiki sp. nov.,; C. Living specimen of A.
wayuunaiki sp. nov. Photographs by Miguel Gutiérrez Estrada (B), and Alex Gonzalez Vargas (C).

(Fig. 5B, E). Mesotergum delimited, divided into
four areas: area I divided into two halves; areas II-IV
undivided (Fig. 5B). Anterior margin of coxa I with three
tubercles, the basalmost bifid, and a medial longitudinal
row of small tubercles (Fig. 5C). Pedipalpal segments
slender and with long setae (Fig. 5B—D). Legs increasing
in thickness from leg I to leg IV, unarmed; leg I filiform.
Fe IV four times DS length (Fig. 5A).

Natural history. 4. venezuelica was found outside
the cave where A. troglobia was collected, as previously
noted by Pinto-da-Rocha (1996) for the same species in
Venezuelan caves.

Discussion

Avima is the largest genus of Leiosteninae (34 spp.),
representing an entangled miscellany of taxa whose
monophyly has not been tested (Villarreal and Kury
2009; Garcia and Villarreal 2020; Garcia and Pastrana
2021). For that reason, we decided to review the
harvestmen literature looking for other species of
Leiosteninae and Avima whose morphology could be
related to A. wayuunaiki sp. nov., A. venezuelica and A.
troglobia, we found similarities with Andean species like

Avima chiguaraensis (Gonzalez-Sponga, 1987), and some
cave-dwelling species such as Avima azulitai (Rambla,
1978), Avima bordoni (Mufioz-Cuevas, 1975), Avima
checkeleyi (Rambla, 1978), Avima chapmani (Rambla,
1978), and Avima falconensis (Gonzalez-Sponga, 1987).

According to the original descriptions and
redescriptions of the aforementioned species, we found
that they are typically (1) large to very large animals (DS
+ Leg IV length = more than 30 mm); have (2) a low and
smooth ocularium (except in A. chiguaraensis), without a
median concavity; have (3) more or less rounded corners
of the LP of the penis and (5) stylus with a longitudinal
dorsal expansion (apparently reduced in A. bordoni,
A. falconensis, and A. troglobia).

Interestingly, the male genitalia of A. wayuunaiki
Sp. nov. 1s very similar to that of A. azulitai (Gonzalez-
Sponga, 1987: 501, figs 640-641) and A. chiguaraensis
(Gonzalez-Sponga, 1987: 513, figs 658-659), sharing
the same macrosetae composition and a smooth dorsal
keel with an elevated medial region with a dorsoapical
sharp projection, reinforcing our idea of some systematic
affinities between them. However, further analysis
(perhaps including the revision of the type material of
A. azulitai and A. chiguaraensis), will shed more light on
this relationship.

zse.pensoft.net

62
About the localities in La Guajira

La Guajira department exhibits a contrasting assemblage
of climatic and geographic conditions that make it
an interesting region for ecological and biological
studies. The majority of its territory is dominated by the
Guajira-Barranquilla xeric scrub ecoregion (NT1308),
characterized by low precipitation rates and thorn-covered
trees and succulent plants as dominant vegetation (World
Wide Foundation 2014a). The southeast area exhibits
forests of Cordillera Oriental montane forests ecoregion
(NTO118), with a predominance of subarboreous and
bushy strata, particularly Perija Mountains sub-ecoregion
(World Wide Foundation 2014b) (Fig. 6A). The cave
where the new species was collected is located in the latter
but is influenced by the humid forests of Sierra Nevada
de Santa Marta ecoregion (NTO159), which has many
endemic species due to its isolation from the Cordillera
Oriental mountain range (World Wide Foundation
2014c). Unfortunately, all of these ecoregions have been
changed due to deforestation by extensive pastures and
the removal of firewood and timber.

Recent efforts to record the biodiversity of these
ecoregions (e.g. particular collections done by the third
author of the present work plus rapid faunistic inventories
developed by the CarBio team), resulted 1n the description
of new spider taxa (e.g. Cala-Riquelme et al. 2015,
2017, 2018; Cala-Riquelme and Salgado 2021), from
both Cesar and La Guajira departments. In the case of
harvestmen, material collected from those expeditions led
to the description of A. wayuunaiki sp. nov. from a cave
in NT 1308 (Fig. 6B), and the new records of A. troglobia
and A. venezuelica (which are the first published
photographs of both species) from NT0O118, in La Guajira
(Fig. 6). Such findings show that our knowledge about
the opilionofauna of this region is incipient, especially
considering that the only recorded harvestman from La
Guajira to date was Cranaus albipustulatus Roewer, 1943
(Cranaidae) (Kury 2003; Ahumada-C. et al. 2020) and
no further collection efforts had been made in the region
since then. Therefore, we believe that new studies in La
Guajira and its ecoregions could reveal hidden diversity
and help in conservation initiatives and efforts.

Acknowledgements

We are grateful to Eduardo Florez (ICN, Bogota) for the
loan of the material here studied, Adriano Kury (MN/
UFRJ, Rio de Janeiro) for all the laboratory facilities,
and Brittany Damron for the English revision of the text.
The photographs were taken with the stereomicroscope
(CNPq Universal 14/2013) in the Invertebrate department
(MNRJ). The SEM micrographs were taken in the
Microscopy Platform Rudolf Barth/IOC-Fiocruz with
the kind assistance of Roger Magno Macedo Silva. The
OmniPaper Project created and maintained by Adriano
Kury was very helpful in providing access to some papers.
The suggestions of Willians Porto (MACN) and one

zse.pensoft.net

Garcia, A.F. et al.: New records of Agoristenidae from Colombia

anonymous referee greatly improved the present work.
This study has been supported by a scholarship from the
Coordenacaéo de aperfeicoamento de pessoal de nivel
superior (CAPES) and the scholarship #E-26/204.248/2021
from Carlos Chagas Filho Foundation for Research
Support of the State of Rio de Janeiro (FAPERJ) to AFG.

References

Ahumada-C D, Garcia AF, Navas SGR (2020) The spiny agoristenid ge-
nus Barinas (Arachnida: Opiliones), with the description of a new
species from the Colombian Caribbean. Arachnology 18(6): 632-641.
https://doi.org/10.13156/arac.2020.18.6.632

Cala-Riquelme F, Gutiérrez-Estrada M, Florez-Daza AE (2015) The
genus Loxosceles Heineken & Lowe, 1832 (Araneae: Sicariidae) in
Colombia, with description of new cave-dwelling species. Zootaxa
4012(2): 396-400. https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.4012.2.12

Cala-Riquelme F, Gutiérrez-Estrada M, Florez-Daza AE, Agnarsson
I (2017) A new six-eyed sand spider Sicarius Walckenaer, 1847
(Araneae: Haplogynae: Sicariidae) from Colombia, with informa-
tion on its natural history. Arachnology 17(4): 176-182. https://doi.
org/10.13156/arac.2017.17.4.176

Cala-Riquelme F, Quijano-Cuervo L, Sabogal-Gonzalez A, Agnarsson I
(2018) New species of Otiothopinae (Araneae: Palpimanidae) from
Colombia. Zootaxa 4442(3): 413-426. https://doi.org/10.11646/
zootaxa.4442.3.4

Cala-Riquelme F, Salgado A (2021) A new species of Marma Simon,
1902 (Salticidae: Euophryini) from Colombia. Arachnology 18(8):
868-873. https://do1.org/10.13156/arac.2021.18.8.868

Garcia AF, Kury AB (2020) The Neotropical harvestman genus Vima
Hirst, with description of a new species from Colombia (Arachnida:
Opiliones: Agoristenidae). Journal of Arachnology 48(1): 67—76.
https://doi.org/10.1636/0161-8202-48.1.67

Garcia AF, Pastrana-M R (2021) A remarkable new species of
Agoristenidae (Arachnida, Opiliones) from Cordoba, Colombia.
Papéis Avulsos de Zoologia 61: e20216127. https://doi.
org/10.11606/1807-0205/2021.61.27

Garcia AF, Villarreal O (2020) Description of a new species of
Leptostygnus Mello-Leitao, 1940 and notes on the male genitalia in
the subfamily Leiosteninae (Opiliones: Agoristenidae). Studies on
Neotropical Fauna and Environment, 1-15. https://doi.org/10.1080/
01650521.2020.1724496

Gonzalez-Sponga MA (1987) Aracnidos de Venezuela. Opiliones
Laniatores I. Familias Phalangodidae y Agoristenidae. Academia de
Ciencias Fisicas, Matematicas y Naturales, Caracas, 562 pp.

Jaffer A (2001) NBS/ISCC Centroids. In: Color-Name Dictionaries [on-
line]. http://people.csail.mit.edu/jaffer/Color/Dictionaries#nbs-iscc
[Accessed 20.07.19]

Kury AB (2003) Annotated catalogue of the Laniatores of the New
World (Arachnida, Opiliones). Revista Ibérica de Aracnologia, vol.
especial monografico 1: 1-337.

Kury AB (2012) First report of the male of Zamora granulata Roewer
1928, with implications on the higher taxonomy of the Zamorinae
(Opiliones, Laniatores, Cranaidae). Zootaxa 3546: 29-42. https://do1.
org/10.11646/zootaxa.3546.1.2

Kury AB, Medrano M (2016) Review of terminology for the outline
of dorsal scutum in Laniatores (Arachnida, Opiliones). Zootaxa
4097(1): 130-134. https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.4097.1.9

Zoosyst. Evol. 98 (1) 2022, 55-63

Kury AB, Mendes AC, Cardoso L, Kury MS, Granado AA, Yoder MJ,
Kury IS (2021) WCO-Lite version 1.1: an online nomenclatural cat-
alog of harvestmen of the World (Arachnida, Opiliones) curated in
TaxonWorks. Zootaxa 4908(3): 447-450. https://doi.org/10.11646/
zootaxa.4908.3.10

Kury AB, Orrico GD (2006) A new species of Lacronia Strand, 1942
from the highlands of Rio de Janeiro (Opiliones, Gonyleptidae,
Pachylinae). Revista Ibérica de Aracnologia 13: 147-153.

Kury AB, Villarreal MO (2015) The prickly blade mapped: establishing
homologies and a chaetotaxy for macrosetae of penis ventral plate
in Gonyleptoidea (Arachnida, Opiliones, Laniatores). Zoological
Journal of the Linnean Society 174(1): 1-46. https://doi.org/10.1111/
Z0).12225

Olson DM, Dinerstein E, Wikramanayake ED, Burgess ND, Powell
GVN, Underwood EC, D’amico JA, Itoua I, Strand HE, Morrison JC,
Loucks CJ, Allnutt TF, Ricketts TH, Kura Y, Lamoreux JF, Wettengel
WW, Hedao P, Kassem KR (2001) Terrestrial ecoregions of the world:
a new map of life on earth. BioScience 51: 933-938. https://doi.
org/10.1641/0006-3568(2001)051[0933:TEOTWA ]2.0.CO;2

Pinto-da-Rocha R (1996) Notes on Vima insignis Hirst, 1912, revalidation
of Trinella Goodnight & Goodnight, 1947 with descriptions of
three new species (Arachnida, Opiliones, Agoristenidae). Revista
Brasileira de Entomologia 40(2): 315-323.

QGIS Development Team (2021) QGIS Geographic Information
System. Open Source Geospatial Foundation Project. http://qgis.
osgeo.org [Accessed 04.04.2021]

63

Rodriguez LM, Galan C (2008) Las zonas karsticas de la Sierra de Perija,
Venezuela: cavidades estudiadas y rasgos geologicos estructurales.
Boletin de la Sociedad Venezolana de Espeleologia 42: 7-19.

Roewer CF (1949) Uber Phalangodiden I. (Subfam. Phalangodinae,
Tricommatinae, Samoinae.) Weitere Weberknechte XIII.
Senckenbergiana 30(1/3): 11-61.

Roewer CF (1963) Opiliones aus Peru und Colombien. [Arachnida
Arthrogastra aus Peru V]. Senckenbergiana Biologica 44(1): 5—72.

Soares HEM, Avram S (1981) Opilionides du Venezuela [I]. Travaux de
I’ Institut de Spéologie “E. Racovitza” 20: 75-95.

Villarreal O, Garcia AF (2021) On the phylogenetic relationships
of Muscopilio, a new Andean genus of basibiont harvestmen
(Opiliones: Agoristenidae). Zoologischer Anzeiger 292: 150-162.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcz.2021.03.006

Villarreal-Manzanilla O, Kury AB (2009) A new generic homonymy
in the Agoristenidae (Arachnida: Opiliones). Zootaxa 2045: 65-68.
https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.2045.1.6

World Wide Foundation (2014a) Guajira-Barranquilla xeric scrub ecore-
gion. _ https://www.worldwildlife.org/ecoregions/nt1308
20.06.2019]

World Wide Foundation (2014b) Cordillera Oriental montane forests
ecoregion. https://www.worldwildlife.org/ecoregions/nt0118 [Ac-
cessed 20.06.2019]

World Wide Foundation (2014c) Montane forest ecoregion of the Sierra

[Accessed

Nevada de Santa Marta. https://www.worldwildlife.org/ecoregions/
nt0159 [Accessed 20.06.2019]

zse.pensoft.net